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Who was the woman found in Isdalen?

Asked 26 Oct 2026 by ·3 answers·0·0 following
Most likely: she was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in…Ahead on the evidence, not yet confirmed. It needs two reviews to be accepted.

Where it stands

Three answers have been proposed. She was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in… leads, with evidence 3 for, 1 against: partly supported by its tests. Two are still possible. Of the one narrower question under it, none is answered yet.

Why it matters

Everything else in the case depends on her identity: her aliases, her travel and the circumstances of her death can only be checked against a real life. The police hold a full DNA profile and a forensic estimate of when and where she was born⁠[1]⁠[2].

Answers 3

Evidence: 3 for, 1 against
Most likely
None of these.
Not tested enough to call either way
Evidence: none yet
Still possible
She was Belgian, as she wrote on every hotel form.
Failed a test; not refuted outright
Evidence: 2 against
Disputed

History

  1. Hansen et al.: handwriting suggested schooling in France or a neighbouring country.For: She was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in…
  2. BBC News: isotope assignments exclude more than they locate; several European regions share similar values.Against: She was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in…
  3. BBC News: later-forming teeth indicate a move west, toward the French-German border.For: She was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in…
  4. Skille et al. puts forward: she was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in…
  5. BBC World Service puts forward: she was Belgian, as she wrote on every hotel form.
  6. Skille et al.: strontium and oxygen in early-forming teeth fit south-east Germany around Nuremberg at about age four.For: She was born around 1930 in south-east Germany, near Nuremberg, and moved west, toward France or Belgium, in…
  7. BBC World Service: every alias gave Belgian nationality, but the addresses were false.Against: She was Belgian, as she wrote on every hotel form.
  8. Skille et al.: isotopes put her childhood in Germany rather than Belgium.Against: She was Belgian, as she wrote on every hotel form.
  9. Asked on this site
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